Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) has revised how it responds to certain incidents in schools, making it clearer what students and teachers should do during an emergency.
Called a standard response, CCPS will use five actions developed by the “I Love U Guys” Foundation and adopted by the school system this year. Action items are lockout, lockdown, evacuate, shelter and hold. The protocols extend the actions principals can take when an incident occurs in or near a school.
During a...
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So. Md Education News
News from the local county public and private schools and colleges.
Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) is participating in Maryland Homegrown School Lunch Week. During the week of Sept. 30 through Oct. 4, cafeterias at all schools and centers will have special menu items featuring products grown and produced locally. Items using local products on the menu that week include fruits, vegetables, dairy and meat products. Featured meals for the week include the following:
Monday, Sept. 30 – beef hot dogs, mini pizza rolls, fresh local green beans and roasted...
Pimpika Hongsawadee, a 2019 graduate of Maurice J. McDonough High School, is the overall winner of the 2019 Charles County Fair art contest. Her artwork is displayed as the cover of the Charles County Fair Guide. She was chosen as this year’s winner by the Charles County Fair Board and Charles County Public Schools (CCPS).
The following students were named overall winners at their grade level in the contest for artwork produced during the 2018-19 school year.
Avery Robinson, kindergarten...
Words matter at Matthew Henson Middle School, and kindness was the word of the day on Sept. 3 as schools opened for the 2019-20 school year.
Wearing matching gray shirts with the message “One kind word can change someone’s entire day,” Henson staff gathered at the front of the school and shared kind words, hugs and encouragement to nearly 800 students as they filed out of buses and cars.
The encouragement and kind words didn’t stop at the front door. As sixth graders joined their homeroom...
The annual Charles County College Fair is set for Wednesday, Sept. 18 at North Point High School in Waldorf. Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) juniors and seniors attend the fair Sept. 18 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. as part of a school field trip. During their visit, students can meet with representatives from colleges and universities in attendance, talk with recruiters who represent the Armed Forces and also learn about opportunities available through vocational and technical schools.
The...
Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) is accepting applications from high school seniors interested in participating in the Maryland General Assembly Student Page Program. Each year, CCPS selects three high school seniors and one alternate to represent the school system in the program.
Student Pages spend two nonconsecutive weeks working in either the state Senate or House of Delegates during the legislative session in Annapolis. The session runs annually from January to April. Pages serve...
The Board of Education’s next monthly meeting is Tuesday, Sept. 10 at the Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building on Radio Station Road in La Plata. The public portion of the meeting begins at 1 p.m. The meeting is televised live on Comcast Channel 96 and Verizon FiOS Channel 12, and rebroadcast throughout the week.
Board meetings are streamed live on the school system website at www.ccboe.com. Select the live streaming image posted on the front page to access the meeting. The following is...
When Keon Stinnie returns to school Sept. 3, he will ride the bus for the first time, attend classes in a new building and start a new grade. So will most of his classmates.
Stinnie, a third grader, is one of about 375 Eva Turner Elementary School students being relocated this school year to the Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) Transition School. His school, a 40-year-old open space building, is undergoing a renovation and expansion, sending the Turner Tigers to temporary classrooms for...
Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) has a new online website featuring school breakfast and lunch menus. The new website is linked to the School Meals menu located on the front of ccboe.com. Click on the red apple image under the photo slideshow to access the new site. The site is also accessible at http://tiny.cc/kgpvbz.
The new site is provided by School Nutrition Network and features information about meal prices and menu options. The site also includes nutritional information such as...
Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) students improved in English/Language Arts (ELA) on the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) assessments in 2019. The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) released local school system and school-level data today for PARCC, Maryland’s school assessments in ELA and mathematics.
Students in grades three through 10 take the state assessment in ELA. Results show progress in grades five through 10, and grades three...
Middle-school students unplugged for the week and got in touch with the great outdoors during Nature Inventor’s Workshop, a day camp that combines STEAM — Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math — practices with activities like fishing, canoeing and making s’mores.
Open to sixth, seventh and eighth graders, the camp is held at the Nanjemoy Creek Environmental Center. It includes less traditional camp activities like making kites out of trash bags, building a simple motor craft out of...
Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) will offer all students free breakfast the first week of school, Sept. 3-6. The goal is to provide students with a jump-start to the new school year and an opportunity to start the day with a healthy breakfast. Breakfast items to be served include milk, cereal, juice and fruit with an additional option of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for high school students.
“We want students to come back to school ready to not only begin a new school year, but to...
Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) is sponsoring a bus hotline for parents to call with questions about school bus routes. Call 301-932-6655 to access the hotline. The hotline is available 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Aug. 29-30, and 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sept. 3-4.
Bus route information for the 2019-20 is now available through the School Locator feature on the CCPS website, ccboe.com. School Locator is designed to allow the public to enter an address and see which three schools – elementary, middle...
Charles Co. Admin Institute starts off new school year with focus on the power of words, school safety
School leaders from Charles County’s 37 public schools and centers kicked off the 2019-20 school year last week during the annual Administrative Leadership Institute. The annual event welcomes Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) principals, vice principals and administrative assistants with three full days of professional development to kick off the new school year.
The Institute was held Aug. 14-16 at North Point High School. The 2019 theme was “The Power of Your Words.” The...
Charles Co. School year 2019-20 officially begins Sept. 3 for students in kindergarten through Grade 12
Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) officially starts the 2019-20 school year on Tuesday, Sept. 3 as an anticipated 27,000 students head to the classroom. Students in the three-year-old and prekindergarten programs start school on Tuesday, Sept. 10.
New this school year is the opening of Billingsley Elementary School, the 22nd elementary school for CCPS, an expansion of the student ID badge program at all high schools, changes to the student cell phone policy and dress code, and an online...
The Board of Education’s next monthly meeting is Tuesday, Aug. 13 at the Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building on Radio Station Road in La Plata. The public portion of the meeting begins at 12 p.m. The meeting is televised live on Comcast Channel 96 and Verizon FiOS Channel 12, and rebroadcast throughout the week.
Board meetings are streamed live on the school system website at ccboe.com. Select the live streaming image posted on the front page to access the meeting. The following is a...
Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) has released its open house schedule for the 2019-20 school year. Listed below are open house dates and times, and other activities for schools. Please call the specific school with questions about open house events.
Elementary Schools
C. Paul Barnhart, open house, Sept. 19, 5:30 to 7 p.m.;
Berry, open house, Sept. 18, 6 to 7:30 p.m.;
Billingsley, open house for prekindergarten through Grade 2, Sept. 19, 6 to 7 p.m., and open house for Grades 3-5...
Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) has released orientation and meet and greet schedules for the 2019-20 school year. Listed below are orientation dates and times, and other activities for schools. Specific questions about orientation events should be directed to individual schools.
Elementary Schools
C. Paul Barnhart, meet and greet, Aug. 28, 2 to 4 p.m.;
Berry, meet and greet, Aug. 28, 1 to 3 p.m.;
Billingsley, meet and greet for students with last names beginning with A-M, Aug. 28, 1...
Second and third graders at Dr. Gustavus Brown Elementary School are brushing up on their math and reading skills with the school’s Jump Start summer program.
For three hours a day over two weeks, students work with teachers in areas that they will be tested on during the school year. All Dr. Brown second and third graders were invited to the program with about 31 signing up, said Karen Lewis, the school’s principal. The students spend an hour-and-a-half on math and then another 90 minutes...
Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) students recently completed in the 55th annual National Leadership and Skills Conference held in Louisville, Ky. A team of the state’s most talented Career and Technology Education (CTE) high school students showcased their skills in 94 CTE competitions. More than 6,400 students from the United States, along with those from Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands, competed.
Madison Grace, a 2019 graduate of North Point High School earned a bronze medal...